Chapter 41
CHAPTER FORTY-ONE
Anticipation flutters like erratic birds behind my ribs as I watch the fae of the Seelie Court pair up with the purple, blue, and orange dragons on the fields outside the city.
This is it. After all our plotting and scheming, it is now time to enter the final stage of this war.
We have weakened our enemies. We have killed Bane and forced Jessina into a state of unhinged rage.
We have gathered our allies. We have strengthened our magic and our power with union bonds. And we have a plan.
Now, it is time to fight.
For our freedom.
For our loved ones.
For the people we have already lost.
And for our future.
Now, four dragon clans, both fae courts, and the entire dryad realm go to war.
One last time.
“Selena.”
Tearing my gaze from the crowd across the grass, I turn to instead meet the serious eyes of Vestra, Yerion, and the other leaders of the fae rebellion. I immediately tense up and brace myself for a fight. They’re not used to being spoken to in the way I did in the meeting yesterday.
“You have done more for our cause this past year than we have been able to accomplish in centuries,” Vestra continues.
“I really hate admitting when I’m wrong, but what kind of leader would I be if I didn’t?
” Her gaze is steady as she holds mine. “I was wrong about you, Selena. We were wrong about you. And I apologize for the unfair way we treated you all these years when you had done nothing but prove your loyalty time and again.”
My eyes widen in surprise. Out of all the things I had expected her to say, that was certainly not it.
And to my embarrassment, I find that I’m almost a little disappointed.
I’m just so angry at everything and everyone.
After I threw the doors open to that rage inside me after I was forced to make Draven hate me, I’ve constantly felt that roaring fury burn inside me, and I desperately need somewhere to direct that rage.
I want to be angry at her. At them all. Because I don’t know what else to do with all of this searing fury inside me.
But maybe I should just save that rage for Jessina instead.
After all, once I finally admitted how I really felt, I realized that there were two things I wanted. Revenge. And recognition. I wanted them to admit that they were wrong about me. I wanted them to regret that they didn’t trust me. I wanted them to see me as the asset I really am.
And now, they have.
So I draw in a deep breath and push aside the burning anger for a moment so that I can instead relish the feeling of, at long last, getting the recognition I deserve.
It settles inside me, steadying my otherwise furiously roaring soul, and the ghost of a smile blows across my lips as I give Vestra and the others a nod.
“Apology accepted.” I hold out my hand. “Now, let’s go free our court.”
She smiles and clasps my hand while the others nod back as well.
After a firm shake, she releases my hand and then walks away with the other leaders of our resistance.
I watch them approach the dragon shifters who they have bonded before I glance towards Draven.
He is giving Lyra some last-minute orders before we leave.
And apparently, Orion too. Though the Unseelie King just rolls his eye, looking half-amused, half-annoyed that Draven is trying to give him orders.
“Fenriel!” Diana suddenly calls a little to my left. “Just give me one minute.”
I look from Diana, who hurries over to some of her clan members, and then towards the red-haired fae man who is striding in our direction.
His blue and gold eyes glow in the morning sunlight as he uses his powers to keep his magical hawk, Talon, summoned.
The hawk rustles its wings where it sits perched on his shoulder.
Next to him, another fae man I recognize is striding along as well. Trevor. The guy with stone magic who probably should have won the Atonement Trials instead of me.
Both of them flash me a smile when they reach me.
“Selena!” Fenriel says in that wonderfully excited voice of his.
Warmth pulses through me. He was like this during the Atonement Trials too. Cheerful and excited. I’m glad to see that this past year hasn’t dimmed his bright personality in the slightest.
“Fenriel,” I reply, and then glance over my shoulder towards Diana. When I meet Fenriel’s gaze again, I raise my eyebrows in surprise and approval. “You bonded the leader of the Purple Clan?”
He blushes as he and Trevor come to a halt in front of me.
“Yes. I can barely believe it.” His eyes glitter, and the words tumble out of his mouth in an excited hurry.
“But she found out that I can summon Talon,” he pets his hawk, “and since her clan magic is animal magic, she thought I was perfect. I can’t believe someone so important chose me. ”
“I can.” I hold his gaze. “You’re a good guy, Fenriel. You always have been.”
“See?” Trevor fills in, and draws a hand through his blond hair while giving Fenriel a knowing look. “That’s what I told you yesterday too.”
Fenriel blushes even more, but his eyes are full of light. “She even invited me to visit her homeland after the war.” Hope and excitement pulse across his face. “Talon and I will finally get that adventure we’ve always been dreaming of!”
“I’m so happy for you,” I tell him, and I genuinely mean that.
Fenriel and Talon are adventurers to their very souls. They deserve to finally see this extraordinary world that is waiting for us outside the thorn forest.
“Trevor!” a male dragon shifter in blue armor calls from close to where Diana is finishing up with her people. “Let’s go, man.”
Trevor raises his hand to him in acknowledgement and then looks back at me and Fenriel.
Hope and anticipation gleam in his eyes as well when he smiles and raises a finger in the air.
“When this is all over, and I’ve opened up that bakery I talked about, I expect both of you to come and try every single pastry I make.
” His grin widens. “After I’ve eaten a boatload of them myself, of course. ”
I laugh. “It’s a promise.”
He chuckles and gives me a nod. Then, with a wink to Fenriel, he jogs off towards the member of the Blue Clan who he has bonded.
Talon flaps his wings and takes off from Fenriel’s shoulder. With an excited call, he swoops towards Diana, who has now finally finished.
Fenriel gives me a playful salute and flashes me another smile. “See you on the other side.”
Then he too jogs off.
I watch both of them go, feeling oddly warm inside.
It wasn’t long, but the time we spent together while we all competed in the Atonement Trials was so intense and so raw that it created bonds between us that can’t be denied.
They’ve been through a lot too, and they deserve to finally live out their dreams as well.
After one last look in their direction, I walk over to where Draven and the others are still talking.
“You know,” Orion says, his eye slightly narrowed as he keeps his gaze locked on Draven. “Even when you ask for something, you somehow still manage to make it sound like an order.”
“That’s what I said!” Alistair exclaims, and points at Orion before looking back at Draven again and raising his pale brows expectantly. “See, it’s not just me.”
“You could try adding a please,” Orion continues, and flashes Draven a devilish smirk. “That might help.”
Draven flexes his hand, but before he can retort, Isera saunters over from somewhere on my left.
“You’re one to talk,” she says to Orion as the both of us reach the rest of them at the same time.
There is a small smirk on her lips as she arches an eyebrow.
“Or are you just jealous that Draven actually gets people to obey his orders while you have fruitlessly told me that I will submit to you how many times now?”
His eye glints in wicked delight as he shifts his gaze to Isera. “Careful with that tongue, little viper.”
“Careful with your commands, pretty boy. Or one of these days, I’ll show you exactly what I can do with this tongue.”
“Oh, I look forward to it.”
“Sure about that? Because that day, you will beg.”
“For you, I just might.”
Surprise pulses across Isera’s face, and whatever retort she had been about to give never makes it past her lips as a hint of red instead flushes her cheeks.
“Ready to go?” I say in order to save her from trying to recover before Orion can spot the faint blush. Though based on the way his eye glitters, he already has.
Isera quickly clears her throat and snaps her gaze away from Orion.
“Yeah, we’re ready,” Lyra replies with a grin. “We were just waiting for the two of you.”
“Alright then,” I smile back at her. “Let’s go get the Soul of Trees.”
After looking to Draven, who gives her a nod, she jogs towards a more open space a little to our right so that she won’t crush us with her dragon form when she shifts.
While she does that, I grab Draven by the arm and pull him with me a couple of steps away from the others. He follows but raises his eyebrows in silent question.
“Are you okay?” I ask, keeping my voice low.
The tether of magic that I braided into our mate bond yesterday is still there, sharing half of my addiction to magic with Draven.
I’m fine. In fact, I’m better than ever.
This level of craving is so far below what I’m used to battling that it no longer bothers me at all.
But Draven didn’t used to have any of these feelings, so I’m worried that such a prolonged exposure to this urge will be hard for him.
I flick a pointed look towards his chest. “With what my magic is doing to you?”
His golden eyes soften when he realizes what I’m asking, and what I’m worried about. Lifting his hand, he draws his fingers along my jaw before brushing his thumb over my cheekbone.
“Yes, I’m okay, little rebel,” he answers. “I promise.”
And I can hear the sincerity in both his voice and his words. But I still can’t help but push.
“You don’t feel any of it?” I ask. “At all?”
“Oh, I feel it.”
Worry crackles through me, and my mouth drops open.
A sly smile spreads across his face as he slides his thumb over my bottom lip. “But not in the way you think. Or the way you do, I suspect.”
“What do you mean?”
“I feel a constant craving. But since I can’t crave the feeling of your magic, because I have no idea what it feels like, I instead just crave… you.”
I blink at him in surprise.
He slides his hand down to my throat and moves closer. “And I already wanted you, all the fucking time, before this additional urge was added.” His hand rests around my throat, keeping it in a firm grip. “So now…”
Heat flickers through me, and I lick my lips before prompting, “Now?”
“Let’s just put it like this.” With his hand still around my throat, he leans down and slants his lips over mine. “When this war is over, I’m going to handcuff you to my bed and fuck you into the next century.”
Pleasure rolls down my spine, and my core throbs. Sliding my hand around the back of his neck, I pull his mouth the final distance to mine and claim his lips in a possessive kiss.
“Good.” I smirk against his lips. “I’ll hold you to that.”
Black smoke washes over us as Lyra shifts into a dragon.
In the brief darkness, Draven cups my cheeks with a sudden tension. “Come back to me.”
My heart clenches. Tightening my grip on the back of his neck, I press my lips firmly to his. “Always.”
The smoke blows clear as Lyra flaps her massive wings and lets out a low rumble, urging us to get on. Isera, Alistair, and Orion start moving towards her.
I give Draven one last kiss. “I’ll see you on the battlefield.”
“See you on the battlefield,” he echoes.
Then I tear myself away and run over to Lyra. But my heart is beating hard when I climb onto her back and settle myself on her spine with the rest of my friends, because I suddenly have a really bad feeling about this.
I don’t like leaving Draven like this. But he needs to lead the attack on the battlefield in order to draw out Jessina. And I need to go to Frostfell since I’m the only one of us who has met Hector and Kath and everyone else from the human resistance in person.
But as Lyra takes off and I watch Draven remain there on the ground as she flies us out across the thorn forest, I can’t shake the feeling that something bad is about to happen.
And with every beat of Lyra’s wings that takes us away from the Seelie Court, that sense of foreboding only gets stronger.
We need to make it through this. All of us.
But now, I’m no longer so certain that we will.